The top goal scorers in Arsenal history

Maybe Scottish football in the 1950s wasn’t all that robust, but Baker managed to score 102 league goals with Hibernian in only 117 games. He then went to Torino the same time Denis Law did. Both hated it there, Law went on to become a Manchester United legend, and Baker signed with Arsenal. He scored 93 league goals, and thanks to a few goals in other tournaments got to 100 on the dot.

Giroud has the most goals in the history of the French national team. We know he was a great goal scorer in his heyday, but that still feels remarkable. Currently doing a bit of a playing retirement with LAFC in MLS, Giroud made a splash with Montpellier in Ligue 1, earning the attention of Arsenal. Let’s just say the club had an encouraging history related to French players. Giroud was a steady goal scorer — that’s the best way to put it. In each of his five full seasons with Arsenal he had between 11 and 16 Premier League goals. All in all, he notched 105 goals with the Gunners.

If you’ve read our piece about the top goal scorers in Manchester United history, then you’re already familiar with Herd. The Scotsman is remarkable in that he topped 100 goals for two of the most prestigious clubs in English football. He had more goals with United, where he played longer, but thanks to 31 goals during the 1960-61 league season, Herd was able to get to 107 goals with the Gunners.

The speedy Walcott was not a prodigious goal scorer per se. He didn’t have a real nose for the net like some forwards, but what he did have was a decade-plus run with Arsenal. Walcott played 397 games for Arsenal and totaled 108 goals. He recently ended his career with the club he began it with, Southampton.

Stapleton came close to pulling a David Herd. He played over 220 games each with both Arsenal and Manchester United. However, he fell just short of 100 goals with the latter. With the Gunners, the Irish centre-forward notched 108 goals. He ended his career as a player-manager for Bradford City in the 1990s.

It’s a tough beat for Lambert that a Hall of Fame American football player also had the name Jack Lambert and has become the definitive sporting Jack Lambert. Of course, Arsenal’s Lambert died in 1940, so it’s not like he was ever aware of that. Joking aside, Lambert died at the age of 38 in a car accident, which is of course unfortunate. Playing between the World Wars, Lambert tallied 12 hat tricks in his time with Arsenal and scored 109 goals in only 161 appearances.

Smith first made his name at Leicester City, leading Arsenal to bring him on board. That decision paid off. The Gunners won two league titles during Smith’s tenure, and he led the First Division in goals twice as well. While Smith was still around when the Premier League was born, he was no longer an elite striker, but added enough goals to get to 115 with the club.

Lewis spent his entire career with Arsenal, though his career was hindered by World War II. The striker played some prior to his military service, but wartime games don’t count toward official statistics. Once the war ended, Lewis kept playing, though age and injuries caught up a bit. He ended his career with 116 goals in 176 official appearances.

Though Bergkamp was often seen as a “second striker” in his career, the Dutchman’s size and skill made him a force on the pitch. He’s considered one of the best players in both Ajax and Arsenal history, which is impressive. Though he scored over 12 goals only once in a Premier League season, Bergkamp racked up a ton of individual accolades. The Dutch legend notched 120 goals with Arsenal.

Jack was perhaps the best goal scorer in the interbellum period of English football between World War I and World War II`. Because he did a lot of that for Bolton Wanderers, his name is perhaps less well-known. Jack potted 161 goals for Bolton, and then he moved to Arsenal and continued to excel. He added 124 goals with the Gunners, and he is one of three players to score over 100 top-flight league goals for two different clubs.

Some might view Hulme as a heretic, because after World War II he became the manager of Tottenham Hotspur. Even so, he was quite the player for Arsenal. An undersized winger, Hulme scored 125 goals for the club. He was a two-sport athlete, by the way, as he was also an excellent cricketer. (Hulme is the handshaker on the right.)

The all-time top goal scorer for the Dutch national team — which is really saying something — also scored a lot of goals for Arsenal. Van Persie saved the best for last as well. In his final season with the Gunners, Van Persie scored 30 Premier League goals and added seven more goals in other competitions. That presaged a move to Manchester United, where he continued to perform well, but it also meant Van Persie ended his tenure with Arsenal with 132 goals.

Even though Lishman had a couple seasons marred by injury, including a broken leg in 1950, he still managed to score a ton of goals. In fact, he was signed to supplement — and later, replace — Reg Lewis, and Lishman ended up with even more goals with the club. All in all, he scored 137 goals for the Gunners and then went and spent a season with Nottingham Forest, then a Second Division team. He scored 22 goals to help get the club promoted and then retired.

In the 1930s, Drake absolutely poured in the goals for Arsenal. During the 1934-35 season he had 42 goals in 41 league games. The next season Drake scored seven — yes, seven — goals against Aston Villa. That remains the record for the most goals by a player in a top-flight game (a record we feel confident will never be broken). Though his career was cut short by World War II and then a spinal injury, Drake managed 139 goals in 184 games.

Brain made history as the first player to score over 100 goals with Arsenal. He did that in 1928, but that wasn’t the end of it for the centre-forward. Brain, like Drake, scored 139 goals for the Gunners. Then, perish the thought, Brain moved to Spurs, though his time there was brief.

In 1965, Radford scored a hat trick for Arsenal. He was 50 days shy of turning 18 at the time, showcasing what was to come for the forward at the club. One season Radford even got moved to the wing and still managed to score 19 goals. As is often the case, eventually time caught up to Radford, and younger strikers came along. He tallied 149 goals for Arsenal before moving to West Ham United.

Though he played on the wing, Bastin still scored a ton of goals for Arsenal. To be fair, he was also the club’s primary penalty taker. In a sense, World War II did cut into Bastin’s career, but there is a caveat. He had suffered a serious leg injury during the 1938-39 season and he never fully recovered. Bastin only played a few games after the war, and he didn’t score a goal. Even so, the winger scored a whopping 178 goals and was the club’s all-time top goal scorer for almost 60 years. (Bastin is on the right.)

Wright, though a bit undersized for a forward, started his career with Crystal Palace. His goal scoring helped get the club promoted, and then got him the attention of Arsenal. That move panned out right away, as Wright scored 24 goals with Arsenal after transferring to the club. Throw in the five goals he had with Palace and he won the Golden Boot. On four occasions Wright had at least 30 goals for Arsenal across all competitions, and he would be the one to break Bastin’s record. Wright scored 185 goals for the Gunners, good for second-most all-time. Oh, and he has the third-most goals in Palace history as well.

Who else could it be? Arsene Wenger’s signing of Henry changed the trajectory of the club. For many, the French striker is Arsenal’s greatest player in its storied history. Well, he did lead the Premier League in goals four times. He was the best player on the “Invincibles” squad. Henry is the only player to get to 200 goals for the Gunners, scoring 226 goals in 370 games.